“I” Have Rights
Report of the study session held by IGLYO
in co-operation with the European Youth Centre of the Council of Europe
and with support from OII Europe & European Parents’ Association
European Youth Centre Budapest / Strasbourg 18 – 22 April 2016
This report gives an account of various aspects of the study session. It has been produced by and is the responsibility of the educational team of the study session. It does not represent the official point of view of the Council of Europe.
1 Reference number of the report given Budapest/Strasbourg, date by EYCB/EYCS secretariat
“I” Have Rights
Report of the study session held by IGLYO
in co-operation with the European Youth Centre of the Council of Europe
and with support from OII Europe & European Parents’ Association
European Youth Centre Budapest / Strasbourg 18 – 22 April 2016
Acknowledgements Asha Vidanovic Dani Prisacariu Euan Platt Greta Bilanzola Kitty Anderson Santi Lima Simone Lucchi Ugla Stefania Jonsdottir
IGLYO Co-funded by Council of Europe European Youth Foundation, the Rights Equality and Citizenship (REC) programme 2014- 2020 of the European Union and the Government of the Netherlands
The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of IGLYO and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the Council of Europe, the European Commission or the Government of the Netherlands
Rue de l'Industrie 10, Bruxelles 1000, Belgium +32495233763 [email protected] www.iglyo.com
2 Table of Contents
I HAVE RIGHTS ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. Table of Contents 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4
INTRODUCTION 6 Aims, objectives and participant profile 6 Intersex: an introduction 7 Sex and gender- important differences 8
PROGRAMME 8 Summary of the main thematic blocks 9 Day 1 10 Day 2 15 Day 3 20 Day 4 24 Day 5 28
MAIN OUTCOMES OF THE STUDY SESSION 29
FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITIES 30
FINAL CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 31
PARTICIPANTS' EVALUATION 33
ANNEXES 35 Annex 1: Programme of the study session 35 Annex 2: Resources on intersex rights 36 Annex 3: Resources on youth 37 Annex 4: Participant list 39
Disclaimer: This publication has been produced with the financial support of the Rights Equality and Citizenship (REC) programme 2014-2020 of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of IGLYO and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Commission. 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
I Have Rights was an historic study session, being the first ever Council of Europe Youth Centre event to explore the topic of intersex. Developed by IGLYO- The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer & Intersex (LGBTQI) Youth & Student Organisation, with close support from the International Intersex Organisation Europe (OII Europe) the study session brought together nine intersex youth activists and twenty LGBTQ allies to learn about intersex identities and experiences, the history and meteoric rise of the intersex rights movement, and how to use children’s and human rights instruments to highlight and challenge the severe and often traumatic violations faced by many intersex people throughout their childhood and adolescence. The session also had a strong focus on practical outputs with the creation of a position paper on intersex, the development of a guide for parents (with support from the European Parents’ Association), five documentary interviews with intersex youth, and the first ever Intersex Youth Network meeting.
The five-day meeting started with a discussion around language and definitions, as although many participants had a strong understanding of issues relating to sexual orientation and gender identity/expression, the topic of intersex is relatively new for many LGBTQ organisations. Although many issues faced by intersex people are similar to those faced by LGBTQ people, there are still important differences. Being intersex is a bodily experience you are born with rather than an identity per se. Furthermore, intersex people often undergo unnecessary surgery and medical interventions at an age where they are no able to consent. This contrasts with many transgender people who are denied access to surgery and medical interventions as part of gender realignment.
The (European) intersex movement is still in its infancy, but a great deal has been achieved in a short space of time, with several European institutions responding to the issues over the last three years, including the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, and the Fundamental Rights Agency. Although a lot of awareness raising and initial research has now begun (see references section), there is now a desperate need for specific legislation, training and resources to protect and uphold intersex people’s rights in reality.
The second day began by looking at some of the common issues faced by intersex young people: secrecy and shame, bodily integrity, discrimination and forced surgery. Through these smaller group discussions, participants deepened their understanding of the challenges and violations often faced by intersex people, especially from a young age. This theme was continued through a selection of activities that highlighted different forms of discrimination based on bodily diversity and sex characteristics and some thought- provoking debates to draw out personal values.
Day three introduced the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and other universal human rights instruments to highlight that intersex children and young people are often denied their basic rights and encourage participants to build strong rights-based arguments to support intersex people through their advocacy and campaigning work. Some of the most pertinent UNCRC articles included:
Article 3: Best interests of the child Although many parents of intersex children are told that normalising surgery and other medical interventions are in the best interests of the child, they are often unnecessary procedures which cause distress and long term emotional damage as well as further medical issues throughout life. Waiting until children are at an age where they can make informed decisions about their body and identity is the only way to fully uphold this right.
4 Article 12: Respect for the views of the child Again this right is particularly important to intersex children and young people, as so often procedures are carried out at birth or during infancy, when the child cannot express their own views.
Article 19: Protection from all forms of violence Unnecessary medical interventions are a form of violence that can have severe impacts on children and young people.
Article 24: Abolishing traditional practices prejudicial to the health of children. Many of the treatments Intersex children face have consequences that diminish the child's ability to obtain the highest level of health possible.
This was followed by two parallel sessions. One to explore the possibility of developing an international intersex youth network and one to build a strong network of LGBTQ allies. In the youth network session, the nine intersex participants shared their own work and identified areas for collaboration. This culminated in a draft two-year action plan which IGLYO and OII Europe will help facilitate.
In the evening, the intersex participants were invited to be interviewed on film to increase the visibility of intersex youth and tackle secrecy, isolation and shame that is often experienced. By sharing their own stories and providing messages of hope, the films aim to reach out to other intersex young people and provide support.
On the fourth day, the focus was moved to applying the learning with two parallel sessions on drafting the intersex position paper and parents’ guide. Both resources will be finalised by volunteer working groups over the next few months. The position paper will provide an overview of intersex people, the issues relating to rights and recommendations for LGBTQ organisations, national governments and European institutions. The guide will be a practical resource for parents, providing an introduction to having an intersex child, where to get support, and how to talk to your child and others about it.
In the afternoon, the participants were divided into six groups and given the task of creating their own information leaflet, info graphic and one-minute film about intersex awareness and solidarity. Although participants found this one of the most demanding and challenging activities, the results were incredible. Many commented that the task made them realise what was possible in a short period of time with few resources.
On the final day guests from the Council of Europe Youth Department and Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity & Expression Unit delivered presentations on the institution’s relevant work and to provide a wider policy context in which to frame the work. This led into an action planning session to give all participants the opportunity to think through how they would share their learning with their own organisations and groups and embed intersex rights into their activism and work.
5 I. INTRODUCTION
Aims, objectives and participant profile
The aims and objectives of IGLYO’s study session were to: • Develop a strong understanding of the issues faced by intersex children and young people • Build support and solidarity for intersex rights across the LGBTQ population • Gain an insight into the intersex movement and how it has developed • Explore how LGBTQ organisations can work to better include intersex people/issues in their work • Create a campaign/resource to raise awareness of intersex rights
Participant Profile
The preparatory team discussed and decided on the following profile for the ideal participant to the study session: • is between 18-30 years old • is an intersex young person/activist or is LGBTQ youth/activist with a desire to actively support intersex rights • is able to attend the full program (every participate must attend at least 80% of the program.) • has a level of English that would allow for unhindered participation in an international seminar. Interpretation services may be possible in exceptional circumstances for participants from very low socioeconomic status or who have experienced homelessness, if they do not have a functional command of English. • is primarily from a Council of Europe Member State. A limited number of places can be given out to participants who are not part of the Council of Europe and we will be happy to accept and review applications from outside of CoE area
Before launching the participant call, the organisers contacted OII Europe to encourage intersex young people to apply to ensure there was adequate representation of those affected by the issue. This resulted in 8 of the 29 participants openly ‘identifying’ as intersex. All other participants had to clearly demonstrate their motivation to become an intersex ally and explain how they would integrate this work into their LGBTQ organisation and group.
6 Intersex: An Introduction
Is it a boy or a girl? The question that is asked the world over when someone gives birth. This binary understanding of biological sex is, however, too simplistic. Intersex individuals highlight that sex, just like gender, should be seen as a spectrum. There are many people clustered at either end- traditionally what we class as male or female- but a large number of individuals who fit somewhere in-between.
OII Europe uses the following definition of Intersex:
“Intersex individuals are persons who do not match medical and societal norms of so-called female and male bodies with regard to their chromosomal, gonadal, endocrine or anatomical sex. The latter becomes evident, for example, in secondary sex characteristics such as muscle mass, hair distribution and stature, or primary sex characteristics such as the inner and outer genitalia and/or the chromosomal and hormonal structure.
Simplifying working definition: We are intersex because our innate sex characteristics are either female and male at the same time or not quite female or male or neither female or male. Although intersex people are born with intersex characteristics, intersex bodies can present themselves as intersex at birth, during childhood, in puberty or in adulthood. A person may realize being intersex at a very early age or later on in life. People with intersex bodies may have an intersex gender identity or they may have any other gender identity”
For a small proportion of intersex people, these differences in sex characteristics are visible at birth, but for the majority they don’t become apparent until puberty or later in childhood. For some, the differences will be so small they may never realise they are intersex at all.
The fact we live in a society which still predominantly fails to recognise people who sit outside of the sex (and/or gender) binary, means that many intersex people are subject to unnecessary and highly traumatic ‘normalising’ surgeries to make their bodies more aligned with traditional ideas of male or female biologies. Medical professionals still too often advise parents of intersex children that such medical interventions are the only option or that there are health risks attached to not having surgery. While in a small percentage of cases surgery is necessary for health reasons, the vast majority of surgeries are merely cosmetic, but often result in ongoing health problems throughout the individual’s life.
7 Sex and Gender- the Differences
Often people see sex and gender as interchangeable or simply as the same thing, but this is not the case. Sex refers to our physical bodies- our biology. This is the first spectrum going from female to intersex to male. Gender, however, relates to the ideas (or social constructs) of masculinity and femininity. Traditionally, in many parts of the world, a series of gender roles have been associated with sex characteristics, so men are meant to be masculine and women, feminine. If you spend a few hours in a busy public place, it quickly becomes apparent that this too is a very simplified view of humanity. People feel and display a full range of genders, which may or may not ‘align’ with their sex characteristics. Every day we see people whose sex characteristics are female, but they display masculine gender traits, or vice versa. For most people, though, the reality is that they are a mixture of masculinity and femininity. Gender can therefore be split into two spectrums- gender identity (the gender you feel and associate with) and gender expression (the gender you use to present yourself to others- clothes, behaviours, actions).
One of the important differences to highlight when talking about intersex people, though, is that although for some, intersex is part of their identity, it is a physical experience that people are born with. People, therefore, are intersex, whether or not they identify as intersex.
1/ Sex Characteristics
Male Intersex Female
2/ Gender Identity
Male Non-binary/Gender queer Female
3/ Gender Expression
Masculine Androgynous Feminine
For simplicity, the above spectrums or continuums have been presented as linear, but in reality they are much more fluid and organic. People’s ‘position’ on each can also change over time or depending upon other external factors.
8 II. PROGRAMME
Summary of the main thematic blocks
The study session was planned and structured to divide into three main thematic blocks. The first block focused on learning and knowledge acquisition, as the majority of participants were new to the subject and needed a strong foundation in the topic. This was achieved through a variety of more formal presentations and non-formal activities to accommodate different learning styles. This block covered the first day and beginning of day two.
The second block encouraged discussion and debate to allow participants to process and digest the learning. This was achieved through a wide range of activities that encouraged personal reflection, the construction of arguments and testing different strategies. This happened over the afternoon of day two and parts of day three.
The final thematic block took up the entirety of days four and five and focused heavily on participants putting what they had learnt into practice. This section was very output driven with the creation of resources, campaigns and individual action plans.
9 Day 1. Monday 18th April
Introduction The first session was opened with an official welcome by the educational advisor on behalf of the Council of Europe, followed by a few words about the educational framework and the general timing of the training (including some observations on special features such as “the silent room”, a place available for anybody who needed time on their own whenever the activity were too emotionally intense).
Euan Platt, Executive Co-ordinator of IGLYO introduced the work that the organisation has been doing recently on intersex and the objectives and the structure of the Study Session was presented.
The session continued with some ice-breaking and group-building activities including a round of names and pronouns. It was emphasized the importance of respecting the way anyone wanted to be addressed. Hence, for everybody to become acquainted also with the use of gender-neutral pronouns, an exercise was carried out in groups of three trying to practice how to use them a in an ordinary conversation.
More exercises were run with the aim of boosting the integration of the group and helping people remember their names and get to know each other. After only a few hours, many participants said that the general atmosphere was positive and welcoming. Participants were then invited to reflect on their fears, contributions and expectations.
Main hopes/expectations: to learn and understand more about intersex; to find new friends; to be in a kind, safe and inspiring environment; to set up future collaborations, to bring up new ideas for campaigns.
Main fears: not enough time; people excluded; too many inputs; too much self-questioning and some people feeling bad; language barrier and the lack of experience in the use of gender-neutral pronouns.
Main contributions: experience (sharing life experience as intersex people); fight for rights; creativity and positivity; readiness to get out of the comfort zone; humour.
In the last part of the morning session the participants were divided into reflection groups to go through the main points of the “group agreement” (below). Apart from sharing and debating on these issues, the reflection group was a chance for the participants to get to know each other a bit better, start to work together, better understand how the reflection groups would work, and of course point out and add some other “guidelines” that the group considered important and worthwhile.
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Respect Give undivided attention to the person who has the floor (permission to speak). Share airtime. Even if we might feel entitled to interrupt sometimes, let’s not. Take a note and address the issue later
Right to pass a It is always okay to pass a question. We can choose to not respond to a question challenge or, simply, to not speak if we do not feel like having something to say at that moment.
Non-judgmental We can disagree with another person's point of view without putting that approach person down. Address the issue, not the person. Violence of any kind will not be tolerated.
Sensitivity to diversity People in the group are different in many ways. We will be careful and try to not make insensitive or careless remarks. Let’s not make assumptions about people’s identities, it’s better to just ask. Ask for permission before touching or hugging someone you do not know well.
Being challenged It is okay to feel uncomfortable, it’s part of learning. Our beliefs might not be the actual facts and many times we will be faced with other people’s different beliefs. To learn, we need to be challenged.
Controversy and We will explore controversies and we will challenge each other’s beliefs politeness and comfort but we will not aggress each other. We will try to not avoid controversy and challenges, even if they make us feel uncomfortable. Avoidance does not solve much.
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Good intent We will call each other on the harmful things we say. We will assume everybody has a good intention but this does not mean there will not be negative impact. When we point to the negative impact, it does not mean that we attack the person behind it.
Have a good time It is okay to have a good time. Creating a safe space is about coming together as a community, being mutually supportive, and enjoying each other's qualities. Relax and be yourself.
Time We are all here to collectively achieve something. In order to be effective, we should use time well. Be on time. Don’t be distracted and don’t distract others.
A group We are collectively responsible for what we need to achieve. Listen, contribute, ask, and have no fear. A collaboration sometimes means letting go of some things, which, in turns, mean gaining other things.
Jeopardy Quiz Participants were divided into teams to test their existing knowledge on intersex rights and begin learning about the topic in a light-hearted way. There were four categories:
Laws and legislation Malta Statement FRA focus paper on Intersex on the rights of intersex people CoE Rights of Intersex Children
The idea behind the exercise was to deal with the main topic of the Study Session starting from something to make participants think about what they knew and what they didn’t, before moving to more theoretical sessions. Actually, the result of this activity was that many participants realized they knew very little about the legal framework and political background of the intersex issue.
12 Definitions and Language After the jeopardy-game, it was time for a deeper clarification on some terminology and a general overview on statistics and figures. It was remarked that intersex doesn’t have to do with (gender) identity per se, although may be a huge part of it. In this sense the group reached the conclusion that Intersex characteristics are to intersex people what gender identity is to trans people.
Many participants were surprised to get to know that –even though some statistics state there’s 1 intersex person every 1500-2000 new-borns, the actual figures could be much higher (probably up to 1/200) taking into account that many people are not aware that they are intersex.
Other considerations were brought up about the use of the term “intersex” and the participants pointed oud that the “intersex status” could work in some countries and contexts, whereas nobody in the room would say they have a “gay status”. To further explore the topic, a couple of videos were shown. One of the key-ideas that was emphasised was the inner struggle that many intersex people go through, between “I want to belong, I want to fit in” and “there’s nothing to get fixed”. It was emotional and touching that after watching a video featuring one of the intersex people of our group, another participant declared they knew they were different, but only when they first saw that video, they understood they were an intersex person.
In line with such reflections it was remarked that even intersex people that identify with the gender they were assigned can have a hard time during puberty because they experience it in different way.
History of the Intersex Movement In the following session it was presented a general overview on the historical development of the intersex issue from the 16th century -when the sex of the new-born was assigned by the parents or the midwife and ratified by thee the religious leader-, until the present days. It was stressed the fact that religions have influenced the social acceptance and integration of intersex people, which in certain contexts were considered like “touched by God” and in others were seen as been under an evil influence.
Moreover, it was pointed out how during the conflicts -and particularly the two world wars- there was a huge increase in the evidence of cases that made physicians understand that being intersex was not as rare as it was thought. Related to that, some of the doctors and scientists that passed a major milestone in the intersex issue were presented and a debate on the role of the medical service (including pros and cons) was opened. It’s worth mentioning that, with the exception of one participant coming from a medical school, most of the group levelled fierce criticism at the medical society, particularly as far as forced surgery was concerned.
Some participants here noticed the dramatic contradiction in terms of the expression: “escaping a surgical intervention”: doctors are supposed to take care of you and not to scare you off.
Some more comments that the group highlighted were: - The internet had a huge role for Intersex people to get in touch each other and become a network and a movement.
13 - The story that was told is just one story, mainly a European one, but we must acknowledge there have been and there are different stories in different regions that contribute to the Intersex movement. - Intersex activism is only 30 years old and, being still young, it’s more difficult to show it’s not just a “bunch of people protesting”.
The presentation moved on to discuss the three main meetings of the International Intersex Fora, which were held in 2010, 2012 and 2013. These meetings have been hugely significant in highlighting and advancing intersex issues as human rights issues at a European and international level, including the drafting of the Malta Statement.
Some key points from the Malta Statement were highlighted: - It begins saying intersex people exist (which leads to official recognition by European institutions); - It insists on the right to gender identity for all, based on self-determination (and implementation of a potentially needed intervention within one month since the decision) - It stresses on the importance of not having a surgery that is not necessary.
Some concerns for the future were then presented. It was stated that it is extremely important for the movement to have enough stamina not to be left at the end one more time and mixed with gender issues (although it has a lot to do with social norms, particularly in some countries it is essential to separate the work on intersex from the debate about gender identity). Considering the Intersex movement as a tiny part of the Human Rights movement and the LGBTIQ movement (even in comparison with transgender issue), the lack of funding and resources were also put on the table.
At this point many participants wondered if for the intersex movement it is good to be part of a bigger movement or it may lead to missing the point (and also not having a specific grant to rely on). Different perspectives were presented: for some people being on their own wouldn’t allow intersex people to have a strong impact; for other it is about time to have a stronger say and lead in the movement. It was added that, at the same time, for the LGBTQ community it shouldn’t be like waiting for intersex people to come in, but rather reach out and help intersex people to be an active part of the movement.
14 Day 2. Tuesday 19th April
The second day of the Study Session started with a World Café to introduce case studies and personal experiences of intersex people. The issues tackled in the discussions were:
1. Shame/Social stigma: a video from Interface project. 2. Autonomy/Bodily integrity: personal story from someone who did not have surgery. 3. Discrimination in sports: newspaper article 4. Identity: intersex person shares their view on identity. 5. Forced surgery: personal story video/letter.
The groups had between 15 and 20 minutes to brainstorm and elaborate on three of the five topics on flipchart with some conclusions and key concepts. The table facilitator
Values Market In the second part of the morning, with the aim to explore the core values that come into play for each of us when dealing with intersex issues and identities, a “values market” was held. Participants were asked to think for few moments about those values they think are important for promoting and implementing intersex rights. They were asked to write down 3-5 values they think are the most important. After a few minutes all the “values” were collected and spread randomly. Afterwards the Stock-exchange of values was introduced and the participants were said they would have to try and earn values which are important for them and that they can trade with others (negotiating and showing who has what) or with Bank (which had an implicit risk, since they wouldn’t know what the bankers would give them for the value they offered to the bank). The Stock-exchange was open for 30 minutes only. For the debriefing of the exercise the participants were invited back to the circle and asked how they felt, whether or not they had achieved what they wanted, etc. After this first round of reflections, they were asked to de-role and connect this simulation to the real life and real values we are promoting and fighting for.
Interesting questions were raised, such as: is there a price tag on values? How realistic this trade might be? Can we simply give away some of our values? What make certain values more valuable than others? What “makes” our values? Are our values, our parents’ values? How often do we confuse and mix values and norms?
The group pointed out that there are many factors (family, religion, etc.) influencing our decisions and, at times, even pushing us to “trade our own values”. Hard as it may seem, the thing, many times, is just about reaching a fair compromise. In this sense however it was remarked by the participants that during the exercise many people were focused on the personal rather than the societal (e.g. trading social inclusion for friendships) when in the real life, more often than not, it is also the other way around.
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Following this an exercise utilising the Schwartz values map was used to show that even though we can all have very different values then as a movement we generally share many common values that we find important as well as placing much less emphasis on the same groups of values.
Equity Walk In the afternoon, with the aim of highlighting the discrimination often faced by intersex people in everyday life and exploring similarities and differences in discrimination faced by LGBTQ and Intersex people, the facilitators ran an activity called Equality Walk. In this exercise, each participant got an identity card and had to reflect about some statements, taking one big step forward, one small step forward or stand still if they agreed, partly agreed or disagreed respectively taking into consideration the identity they represented. The roles assigned by the cards included, for example, a non-binary person who is androgynous, a non-binary person with a feminine gender expression, a gay man with a masculine gender expression, a cis gay man who has a feminine gender expression, a cis gay woman who has a feminine gender expression, an intersex person who expresses in a masculine manner, an intersex person who has never had any surgery …and many others.
Statements: • I can easily find positive role models to whom I can relate in films and TV • My school discussed people like me in a positive way • People will have good information and knowledge about people like me • I have never felt that I have to hide something about myself • I have never been made to feel different from others • I can easily connect with people who are like me in my near community • I have never had problems with my family because of who I am • My parents have never lied or kept secrets from me that have to do with my body • I have never felt like I had to explain anything about my identity • I have never felt like I had to explain anything about my sex characteristics • I have never had someone misgender me • I have never been told what my sexual orientation is by a doctor
16 • I have never been made to feel uncomfortable using a public changing room or toilet • I did not have any unnecessary medical interventions growing up • I have never had anyone else making irreversible decisions about my body
In the debriefing after the exercise the participant remarked how difficult it’d been to really understand another identity and get into the role, but also how hard it’d been to enjoy the activity when you actually were too close to it.
17 Walking Debate The following activity was meant to help the participants to go deeper in the debate around intersex issue. Thus, to stimulate the whole group to actively participate and show their view, a “walking debate” was set up where each participant expressed their agreement or disagreement on a series of statements moving respectively toward one side of the room or the opposite. • Intersex children do not need to know that they are “different” • No intersex person should want to “be cured” • It is the responsibility of the intersex movement to challenge the gender binary • Parents should not take medical decisions for their infants and children • Intersex and trans issues are very similar, so the groups should work together • Intersex people should have a disability status
Apart from getting an overview about where the people stand when it comes to such strong terms, the activity offered the opportunity to collect different opinion and perspectives. Here some of the comments made during the exercise:
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On the other hand, just because of About surgery: “When you hate that, for some participant it was something of you and you feel extremely energy-draining and that’s desperate, you are likely to fall why the team, besides supporting into magical thinking and be those who had been emotionally convinced that if you change a touched by the previous exercises, certain thing, everything will also presented their own experience change. But reality is not like about how to tackle certain topics, how that.” to say to a child that they are Intersex, etc.
Moreover, an interesting Apart from being a pretext debate started around the to tackle specific topics adjective “different” and its and gather the opinion of repercussions for young the group around different people trying to find out their issues, for many own identity. participants this exercise was a way to connect with a deeper emotional level and challenge their own believes.
About Intersex movement: “One may think that if it’s not their responsibility to About Intersex: “from an intersex challenge the gender binary child/teenager perspective, it’s totally system, then whose understandable the need to fit in, but responsibility is that? there should be nothing to be cured or However you can’t expect a to be tagged as disability status as long minority to have an impact as people and society in general on the system. That would understand it is a natural condition”. put too much stress and too much responsibility on them”
19 Day 3. Wednesday 20th
Laws, Legislation & Children’s Rights The first activity of the day focused on laws, legislation and children’s rights”. First and most important, the whole session was based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and aimed at identifying how we can use it in our organizations and practice. The different articles of the Convention were spread on the floor in a way that everybody could walk around and read them taking all the time they might need to understand and internalize the main concepts.
Regulations by the Council of Europe and other conventions were also presented and utilized:
- Gender Identity, gender expression and sex characteristics act (Malta, 2015) - Ombud person for children (example from Iceland).
Split into six groups, participants were given some time to identify as many key-words as possible which related to the conventions and were of particular relevance to the Intersex movement. This exercise was important to bring up topics to work on in the following part of the session.
Key words: health; education; information; reports; families; non-discrimination; freedom; dignity; “boys and girls”; identity; rights; respect; pregnancy; decisions; informed consent; support; wellbeing; visibility.
Out of these key-words, 9 main thematic areas were created: - Health care - Education and Information - Safety and Protection - Consent and bodily protection - Privacy - Right to Identity - Family - Respect and Dignity - Freedom
At this point, each group had to pick a theme and set up a strategy / strategic plan using the UNCRC not as a reference source only, but as a tool to consolidate and defend the strategies planned. In other words, in order to training specific skills, the plan didn’t have to be fully realistic, but the discourses had to be based on the articles (also in terms of relying the discourses on the right(s) chosen). Here below some of the results of the team-work as they were presented on flipcharts (including key issues addressed, relevant institutions, groups or other parts of society approached, type of information aimed to disseminate:
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Healthcare
ISSUES WHO WHAT • Access to healthcare (art.27) • Medical establishment • Advocacy Vs awareness - raising • Unnecessary, non-consenting (med. Schools incl.) materials (public) surgeries • Parents (of intersex • Know your rights - • Misinformed medical children) documentation (parents and establishment • Children (intersex) kids) • Information about their bodies • General public / society • Education to doctors and (art.24) medicine students • Pathologizing medical terminology • In medical school (students) • Children and parents don´t know • Continuing medical education their rights (art.42) (doctors) • Unstable mental health due to • Legislation and statements by current practices (art.39) different governments, UN, etc.
Bodily Integrity
ISSUES PLAN • Non-consensual sterilization / treatment of intersex • National governments should put an end to children (Malta statement PT 4 and part.4 + UN article normalizing practices without the consent of the 19) child; present a protocol to make it mandatory • Children and parents not given access to full • Medical professional should give full information information, medical records and history of the child to parents and children. They should talk to the (Malta statement PT 10 UN article 4) children and wait for their consent / Education, • Not ensured bodily integrity psycho-social and peer information of medical practitioners / introduction support (Malta ST 17) of a protocol. • Non-consensual procedures many times go against the • Mass media raise awareness + internet best interest of the child (art.3) • parents : approach them (with the help of social • * Children's decisions are not taken into consideration workers), educate them on intersex issues, raise awareness, explain protocols, • Patients’ rights commissioner.
Education
PLAN • Educate doctors • Target university professors, students, free staff, research grants • Educate parents • Support network • brochures/guide in paediatric centres • Quote article 5 and 18 • Empower intersex people • Guidebook for children (libraries in schools) • Quote article 17 • Broader representation in fiction tv • Educating teachers • Dress Codes • Gender markers • Educate public • Media representation Art.17.
As a general conclusion, all the groups acknowledged the importance of using official documentations, conventions and acts as reference sources and relying on them in order to consolidate and strengthen the impact of their discourse.
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Building an Intersex Youth Network (parallel session 1) This session was open to the intersex participants to provide a dedicated space for them to share their work with each other and explore the possibilities for greater collaboration. The session began with each participant giving a brief background to their organisation or activist work. Even through these initial discussions, participants started to identify crossovers or projects they could contribute to. For the second part of the session everyone was asked to create a wishlist of the things they would like to see change or happen for intersex young people. This shared visioning created a lot of optimism within the group and a shared sense of the work ahead. In the final part, the group worked through the aims together, trying to turn them into concrete actions and then placing them on a three-year timeline to create a sense of what achievable in the short and medium term to begin with.
Some of the main activities and changes identified by the group included:
Activities - Shared online platform for resources on intersex - Online meeting of group for updates - Follow up meeting for intersex activists - Translation and dissemination of new IGLYO resources - Connect with other intersex orgs - Global intersex youth network
Changes - Intersex people discussed within education - Intersex is a commonly known and used word - Strong funding opportunities for intersex work - Gender markers removed from official documents - Self-determination for intersex children and youth - Easier to find other intersex young people - Greater visibility of intersex people
Becoming an Intersex Ally (parallel session 2) After answering a brief questionnaire about the accessibility of their organizations for Intersex people, the participants were divided into four groups and were invited to conduct a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) about why and how Intersex people could participate in their organizations.
This part of personal reflections and sharing was complemented with the introduction of two key-words: Tokenism and Appropriation. First the two words were explained and secondly different examples linked to Intersex issues were collected from the group.
Examples pointed out and organized as in a “DON’Ts list”:
22 * Adding the I to your organisation without actually working on it. * Working on intersex issues without involving intersex people
At this point some interesting reflections and questions were brought up:
Questions and Issues Solutions What to do when you’d like to work on Intersex - Contacting specific organisations and issues but –for any reason- in your community you networks for help can’t find Intersex people willing to participate? - Set up an online meeting - If we don’t yet have openly intersex people involved - in the organization, is it good/positive to add the I to our organization to make it clear that our association is open and eager to work with intersex people?
How to keep the work on Intersex going –in terms of - time and energy- if after the first steps you still have no Intersex people involved?
• Inviting intersex expert to their org to hold workshops for the local community • Paying for workshop trainer to support the person to do their job • Reserving place in the workshops for intersex people • Offering space for meetings (and also for gathering not necessarily with LGBT people) possibly with the extra support of a psychologist or an Intersex person trained in consultancy. • Throwing announcement for intersex people to have space to write blogs/articles • Expanding existing workshops to include gender and body diversity • Organizing “living libraries” involving Intersex people (either in safe spaces or public spaces, depending on the profile of the group and the social context).
Once these ideas were discussed and further elaborated, the participants were asked to think about concrete steps to be implemented in their organizations to become allies of the Intersex community.
23 Day 4. Thursday 21st April
The entire day was dedicated to work on useful resources and practical outcomes. In the morning two parallel workshops were carried out to let the participants –split into two groups- become acquainted with and actively contribute to either IGLYO Parents’ guide or IGLYO Position Paper.
Parents’ Guide At the beginning of the session IGLYO presented its concept for the guide as being an introductory resource for parents who had just given birth to an intersex baby or discovered that their child was intersex at a later stage of development.
In order to provide a perspective from a parent, Dr Brigitte Haider, from European Parents’ Association, talked briefly about the organisation and offered some considerations to incorporate when writing the guide.
Some interesting points came up during this first debate: - It is important to start tackling the reality in all its facets, including lack of knowledge and fears. - It is essential not only respect, but recognize the beauty of the diversity - Keep in mind who this guide is addressing: what knowledge they may have, what channels are the most suitable - The main issues that Intersex people face on daily basis, such as shame, stigma, discrimination, etc. as well as fundamental legal aspects such as the right to privacy and informed consent should be kept as core elements of the guide. - As a general recommendation, before start editing any chapter, try to put yourself in other people’s shoes: it is a powerful exercise to start understanding how it’d be to have a certain role. - Don’t forget to include resources (even at the very beginning of the publication) about how to manage the pressure as well as some motivational and supportive texts. It is totally normal for the parents to be scared and have doubts: they need help to handle their emotions and take care of themselves. - It’s advisable to add specific chapters dedicated to how to talk to teachers and doctors. Note it’s a very different situation (between doctors and teachers): with teachers, it’s the parents who eventually take decisions, but with doctors it’s much more complicated since they represent “the authority”. That’s why it is important to provide the parents with some legal recommendations and references (e.g. UNCRC).
The general structure of the guide was then agreed before participants divided into small teams to start drafting chapters. Each group was invited to come up with overarching questions or “bullet points” to start.
Here below some of the initial notes from the session:
1/ Talking to and supporting your child: - Honesty: let children ask; how to respond; information sorted out age-wise - Not shaming: celebrate the diversity and don’t use a discriminatory vocabulary (e.g. avoid saying “typical period” if it is not “typical” for everybody). - Decision making: give the child the access to clear and proper information (including medical reports); empower them and support them to decide in relation to medical interventions.
2/ Talking to family and friends - Be proud: don’t be ashamed and don’t make people think it is a problem. - When talking to people at school, make sure it is a safe space in all its features: classes, bathrooms, locker rooms, dressing rooms etc. - Advocate for gender neutrality. - Don’t talk about Intersex issues only with the closest circles. Be an educator for the society.
24
2/ Talking to professionals: - Main concepts: privacy, informed consent, child and parents’ rights - References: previous experiences of Intersex people and their families; good (and bad) practices. - Food for thoughts: don’t assume that all the surgeries are unnecessary, the question is how to say between the necessary and unnecessary ones? Ask for second opinions and make sure you’re explained in “normal” words (not only with medical vocabulary).
In the last part of the session, the participants had the chance to better define the outcomes, further explore the topics and find out connections with other issues that had been pointed out.
Position Paper In the past IGLYO has released series of position papers that signify IGLYO’s stance on topics related to LGBTQI youth. In the last few years, position papers have been released on various topics, such as health, religion, norm criticism and intersectionality. Once IGLYO embarked on a journey to become intersex inclusive, a position paper is important to give our official stance on the issue in a concise and a professional manner. It was therefore decided to allow the participants at this study session to participate in the making of this document for IGLYO.
During the workshop slots the group decided on the main chapters that should be included in this position paper. They were as followed.
Introduction - Introduction to IGLYO, the reason for this position paper and introduction to the topic itself.
Chapter 1 - What is Intersex? This chapter was to provide with practical information on what intersex is and how it is framed, understood and explained.
Chapter 2 - Human Rights Violations. This chapter is to provide concrete and practical information regarding the human rights violations that intersex people around the world currently face. This will give the reader a full overview of the main challenges and changes that have to be made in order to stop these violations and ensure intersex people are respected and their human rights protected.
Chapter 3 - Challenges in Society. This chapter will give an overview over the challenges that intersex people face in society and in their personal lives. This chapter should give a good overview over the social status of intersex people and highlight the need and duty of inclusive education on intersex issues.
Chapter 4 - The I in LGBTQI. This chapter is to highlight why it is important for the community to actively mainstream intersex issues into their work and show how these issues are connected in various ways to the LGBTQI community as a whole. It will provide practical information on the connection between the two and offer people an understanding and ideas on how to include the I in the LGBTQI community.
Chapter 5 - Useful links and resources. This chapter will focus on providing the reader with useful information and valuable resources on the topic to learn more and educate themselves further on the issue.
25 Campaign Challenge In the afternoon the participants, divided into different groups, run a “campaign challenge” in which each team had to prepare: - one minute film - infographic for social media - A5 electronic information leaflet
The activity aimed at creating tools and strategies to raise awareness about Intersex issues at the same time as the participants developed technical skills and competences in campaigning. As it was clarified also during the debriefing, it was a real simulation also in terms of team-work, time- and stress- management and, in this sense, it represented a huge learning experience.
The results of this activity were presented the following day:
Group 1
- Video on the use of the pronoun “they” and gender-neutral toilets - Infographic: “DONUT” be afraid! Know your rights! (right to education, privacy and health care); your opinion matters! (based on UNCRC) - Leaflet: Awareness and recognition, for everybody to be proud of their identity
Group 2:
- Video: “How to become an intersex ally”: recognise your privileges, listen, respect, do your homework (educate yourself), speed up… but not over, ally is a verb: DO something! “Nothing about us, without us”. - Infographic: key-ideas to point out that Intersex people are the experts of their own lives.
26 Group 3:
Video Surgery, how would you feel if you had a surgery without knowing about it?
Infographic Myths and stereotypes: Intersex is not sexual orientation; Intersex is not transgender issue; Intersex is not having full sets of developed genitalia but rather “a mix of genitals”; some statistics reflect that up to 1 out of 200 people is actually intersex… then you most probably have already met some Intersex people.
Leaflet Stigma and other issues that Intersex people have to face: shame, stereotypes, misconceptions and surgery itself.
Group 4:
Video What a social worker should do when your client is an Intersex person: social workers are there to help not in medical matters, but in any other issues they may face
Infographic How to work for and with Intersex people
27 Day 5. Friday 22nd April
CoE Presentation
Tikli Oikarinen from the SOGI Unit and Ruxa Pandea from the Youth Department presented the work of the Council of Europe, with the special focus on the work on gender issues and particularly intersex issues. Participants were presented with the work of both SOGI Unit and Youth Department and opportunities for their possible involvement through various programmes, seminars and other educational and/or advocacy activities.
Action Planning
Participants were given three footsteps to identify concrete actions that they and their organisations could take to actively support and include intersex youth and their rights throughout their work. Each then presented to the group what they aimed to do in one month, six months and one year.
Group Evaluation The evaluation session began with a guided ‘walk through’ of the five days. Participants lay on the floor with their eyes closed, while the facilitator reminded everyone of each session, and some of the main discussions and learning from them. Participants were then asked to depict their learning and development over the week by creating a before and after model from coloured clay. To complete the evaluation, participants filled out an online questionnaire, the results which are presented at the end of this report.
To close the study session OH cards were used to give each participant a chance to talk about their personal experiences of the event. It was a powerful end to the meeting and highlighted not only the personal journey some participants had gone through, but elements of overcoming past hurt and difficulties.
28 III. MAIN OUTCOMES OF THE STUDY SESSION
The main outcomes of the study session have been grouped under the initial aims and objectives below.
1/ Develop a strong understanding of the issues faced by intersex children and young people and 3/ Gain an insight into the intersex movement and how it has developed
The outcome of increased knowledge and understanding of intersex experiences and rights was achieved through both formal presentations to impact information (history of the intersex movement, common intersex experiences, personal accounts) and follow up activities which used experiential learning (equity walk, values exchange) and the application of knowledge into debates and practical use (walking debate, using children’s rights to frame arguments)
2/ Build support and solidarity for intersex rights across the LGBTQ population
This outcome was achieved first through the participant selection process to ensure a mix of intersex and LGBTQ young people, to facilitate peer learning and alliance building. This was built upon through a dedicated session on becoming an intersex ally and several group activities which encouraged discussion and developing shared values. The continual mixing of participants through group activities also ensured that more personal connections developed between the participants to support future co-operation.
4/ Explore how LGBTQ organisations can work to better include intersex people/issues in their work
The outcome of increased confidence and motivation to include intersex rights within their work was clearly demonstrated by participants both through the individual action planning session and the group evaluations. Individuals reported to having a clearer idea of how they can involve and support intersex people and demonstrated a willingness to take the first steps to making this a reality through their activist work.
5/ Create a campaign/resource to raise awareness of intersex rights The final aim resulted in several outputs, which are detailed in the Follow Up Activities section below, but the outcome of increased skills and experience in designing and developing an intersex specific campaign was achieved through the campaign challenge workshop, with many participants saying that although they found the exercise challenging, they were positively surprised by what they were able to achieve. The finished products also demonstrated how much the participants had learnt over the five days with several resources highlighting they had a strong grasp of the issues.
29 IV. FOLLOW UP ACTIVITIES OF THE STUDY SESSION
The study session was designed in a way to produce a high number of concrete outputs and follow up activities. These include: a/ Position Paper on Intersex A half-day session was devoted to planning and drafting a position paper for IGLYO and its members on intersex rights for children and young people. As well as guiding the work of the organisation and the network, this paper will be a detailed resource on the subject and contain clear recommendations for institutions and organisations at different levels. This will be available from August 2016. b/ Parents’ Guide to Intersex (in partnership with OII Europe & European Parents’ Association) Running in parallel to the position paper session, the other half of the participants worked on creating a practical guide for parents of intersex children. Nine chapters were agreed and participants worked in small groups to develop these. At the end of the session, a working group of five volunteers were established to further develop and edit the guide. It will then be reviewed by EPA before being launched at the end of the year. c/ We Are Here: a message to intersex youth As part of the study session, IGLYO commissioned a film maker to carry out a series of documentary interviews with five of the intersex participants. These short films are currently being produced and edited for release on Intersex Awareness Day in October. The launch will begin with a montage of all five interviews, with each individual interview being posted over the following weeks.
d/ Intersex Youth Network A session which was dedicated to the intersex participants was included in the programme to give them the opportunity to discuss how they could work together in a more co-ordinated way and to explore the benefits and challenges of developing an Intersex Youth Network. It was a very empowering session with lots of ideas generated. IGLYO will continue to work with the CoE Youth Department to help facilitate the development of such a group.
30 V. FINAL CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
I Have Rights study session provided an important opportunity to examine the experiences of intersex children and young people and highlight the rights they are often denied. It is an emerging topic within the wider human rights and children’s rights discourse, but clear actions need to be taken swiftly.
Recommendations
1. Human rights approach to intersex work Any work on intersex should be built upon children’s and human rights frameworks, with particular focus on self-determination, bodily autonomy, physical integrity, and the best interests of the child. Equality bodies and children's ombudspersons should be clearly mandated to work on issues affecting Intersex children's human rights.
2. Awareness raising and information There is still a lack of knowledge and understanding about intersex people amongst the general population. To change attitudes and build support, a wide range of resources and campaigns are needed to ensure intersex rights become part of wider discussions on equality and diversity. Parents often lack any information on non pathologised approaches to engaging with their Intersex child. Their child's diversity is usually framed as an illness or disorder than can easily be solved with a surgical intervention to normalise the appearance of their sex characteristics. Resources on how to approach the issue of raising children that do not quite fit into societal and medical norms of how bodies should look, without performing cosmetic procedures are sorely lacking.
IGLYO’s Commitment Parent’s guide will be released in October
3. Greater visibility Intersex young people still report that they are told or made to feel that there is no-one else like them, which often results in secrecy and shame. There is a clear need for greater visibility of intersex people (especially young people) to provide positive role models and a sense of belonging to other intersex youth. Experience with previous visibility projects is that they reach Intersex people who have never had access to information that they connect with themselves. For many Intersex youth such visibility projects are the first time they hear about others sharing their realities. This can often serve to empower them to reach out and engage with other who share their histories.
IGLYO’s Commitment Six films of intersex youth will be launched between October – December 2016 to provide positive messages to other intersex young people
4. Education and training One of the greatest needs is to work with professionals who play a key role in intersex young people’s lives- doctors, nurses, teachers, social workers, psychologists- to ensure they have adequate information and training on working with and supporting intersex youth. Much greater emphasis must be placed on Psychological support both for Intersex children and youth but also for their parents. Research shows that 32,5% of parents who felt they needed psychological support only received such support partly and 52,3% received none at all. Furthermore, research indicates that parents offered non medicalised information about their Intersex child are far less likely to opt for surgery to normalise the appearance of their child. Focus must be placed on disseminating non pathologised information on
31 Intersex realities.to aid in creating accepting social environments where Intersex children and youth are treated with dignity and respect.
5. Support for intersex youth Intersex young people benefit from being connected to and meeting others who have had similar experiences to themselves. Currently no human rights affirming youth networks are available that are geared specifically to Intersex youth. There is a great need to create spaces that celebrate human diversity with a focus on the issues that Intersex youth face More opportunities need to be created to bring intersex young people together to provide peer support, discuss personal experiences and develop their own solutions and strategies to bring abut societal change.
IGLYO’s Commitment To explore funding opportunities with the CoE Youth Department and other institutions to set up a follow up meeting for the intersex youth network in partnership with OII Europe.
32 VI. PARTICIPANTS’ EVALUATION
Evaluation of the study session was conducted on multiple levels: • Daily feedback as part of reflection groups • Participant questionnaire (some highlights below) • Group evaluation exercises on the final day, including a personal development activity to show learning and growth as a result of the programme.
Overall the study session evaluated extremely well, with all activities being ranked in the majority as very good or good. A small number of activities had a mixed rating, but explanations for these included a high volume of information or not enough time. Participants particularly commented on the opportunities to create concrete products and feel like they were contributing to something useful as well just learning.
Overall comments included:
“Overall it was a very professional and quality study session! The venue was amazing and program well structured. Prep Team responded actively to any problems and questions”.
“Loved this! I've gained so much insight into intersex needs and experiences, and have gained real practical methods on how to empower intersex activists in their fight. So glad I came! Thank you. X”
Brilliant people from amazing NGOs and I hope I can work with them all again soon
Most of us very visibly anxious in the first few days, but had really come out of our shells by the end.
The dynamics of the group were excellent. I realize this could really not have gone that well, esp considering there was a lot
of us, but I think we all contributed to the learning process,
everyone was respectful and nice, and much worked
managed to be finished.
You all are amazing human beings :)
Very professional and supportive.
always felt supported by the prep team with any questions I had, great to have someone with time to help when I had a lot of anxiety.
I am proud of the prep team for pulling this off with minimum
drama and keeping in the time limits so well
33
Really good to learn about these things and also how to use them in our work.
A bit confusing
Good way to learning how to use rights to our advantage
Maybe discuss other rights documents apart from the CRC and
explain more clearly how ngos can bring complaints/write shadow reports
We got to do so much in such a short amount of time! And I learnt a lot about developing info-sheets.
Too much time pressure
Surprised how much we could consistently achieve in such a short
period of time!
One of the best parts of the study session. Really helpful, extremely happy to have contributed somehow in the production of something important.
Useful, practical, the point doing this was clear to me. I’ve enjoyed a lot! Hopefully it will be developed to be a great advocacy tool. Would love to be part of this process.
Great method. We produced so much.
Needed more time. This would be great to have time to work on this another time in the week.
Liked the practical value of this exercise!
Another great session to show us how much we could achieve in a very short period of time. We'll be making more videos!
Super stressful but fun!!
Too much stress ... Maybe cut it down to just a film or another
medium
Good, but tough
34 ANNEX I: ANNEXES:
Programme
of the Study session
35 ANNEX II
Resources on Intersex Rights
1. Council of Europe (2015) Human rights and intersex people https://wcd.coe.int/com.instranet.InstraServlet?command=com.instranet.CmdBlobGet &InstranetImage=2909386&SecMode=1&DocId=2367288&Usage=2
2. Council of Europe (2013) An insight into respect for the rights of trans and intersex children in Europe https://rm.coe.int/CoERMPublicCommonSearchServices/DisplayDCTMContent?docume ntId=090000168047f2a7
3. Fundamental Rights Agency (2015) The fundamental rights situation of intersex people http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2015-focus-04-intersex.pdf
4. ILGA Europe (2016) Standing up for the human rights of intersex people http://www.ilga- europe.org/sites/default/files/how_to_be_a_great_intersex_ally_a_toolkit_for_ngos_a nd_decision_makers_december_2015_updated.pdf
5. International Intersex Forum (2013) Malta Statement http://ilga-europe.org/what-we-do/our-advocacy-work/trans-and- intersex/intersex/events/3rd-international-intersex-forum
6. IGLYO (2015) Intersex Q&A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4Z95e_aQBc
7. IGLYO (2015) Interview with OII Europe 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vrse-LdHxyA
8. IGLYO (2015) Interview with OII Europe 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXXSRvTtAZA
36 ANNEX III
Resources and publications related to Youth:
The Council of Europe Youth site: www.coe.int/youth
• Call for trainings • reports of all Youth Department activities • How you and others can be active for youth policy • Youth Card for Youth Mobility • No Hate Speech Movement
Human Rights Education manuals:
• Compass site: www.coe.int/compass • Download the Compass: Human Rights training manual in different languages • Compass Edit 2012 can be downloaded from: http://eycb.coe.int/compass/en/pdf/compass_2012_inside_FINAL.pdf • Gender Matters – addressing Gender Based violence • Compasito - Human Rights education for children (in various languages) • Have your Say, on Youth Participation at local level • Education pack - activities for youth work (in various languages) • Domino - activities for campaigning • Living Library - methodology for dialogue and learning and video
T-kits of the EU-CoE partnership: http://youth-partnership-eu.coe.int/youth-partnership/publications/T-kits/T_kits
• training kits with background info and exercises • practical tips and idea's • Easy to read • topics like: Project management, running a youth organisation, inter-cultural learning, volunteering, Fundraising, social inclusion and Euro-Mediterranean cooperation
European Youth Foundation: http://www.coe.int/en/web/european-youth-foundation
• Funding opportunities for youth organisations
EU- CoE Youth Partnership: http://youth-partnership-eu.coe.int
• Youth policy information • Common definitions, Country profiles etc.. • Knowledge centre and research on youth policy • Global youth cooperation • Links links links...
37 Youth Work Portfolio: http://www.coe.int/en/web/youth-portfolio
Useful resources of youth organisations using Compass and Compasito:
• Rainbow resources – Compasito Companion on sexuality and gender http://www.ifm-sei.org/toolbox/rainbow-resources
Some important recommendations & charters for the Youth Sector:
The Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education
• Film animations • Resources and training manuals
The Enter project and its Recommendation on Access to Social Rights of Young People
Bodies of the Council of Europe to also consider:
Commissioner for Human Rights
• Country reports on present HR issues • Range of thematic dossiers (such as Children rights, LGBTI, Migration, etc)
The Council of Europe and NGO’s
• World Forum on Democracy • Code for civil participation
And many more themes:
• Convention on the conservation of European wildlife and natural habitats (Bern Convention) • Sport and Ethics • Gender Equality and Violence against Women and Domestic Violence • Rights of Persons with a Disability • Racism and Intolerance - ECRI • Children Rights and the One in Five Campaign, the underwear rule, and the stop slapping campaign • Roma Rights • National Minorities • Combating Discrimination based on sexual orientation or Gender identity • Cyber Crime and Internet governance
38
ANNEX IV
PARTICIPANTS’ LIST
Name Last Name Age Country of Residence Organisation Name Amanda Geenen 22 UK Stonewall UK Ana Saralidze 23 Georgia Identoba Anja Koletnik 30 Slovenia TransAkcija Anna Darta Sarma 22 Latvia Mozaika Ask Aleksi Berglund 19 Norway Skeiv Ungdom Asmira Topal 27 Croatia Trans Aid Bart Vandenbussche 29 Belgium Wel Jong Niet Hetero Bernardo Lima 25 Portugal Action For Identity Christoph Alms 30 Germany Jugendnetzwerk Lambda Emily Quinn 26 USA interACT Evgeni Minev 26 Bulgaria LGBT Plovdiv Giorgi Bardzimashvili 21 GEORGIA Identoba Gloriya Filipova 23 Bulgaria Bilitis Resource Center Foundation Ilia Savelev 20 Russia Association of Russian-Speaking Intersex Irina Kuzemko 22 Russia Association Russian-Speaking Intersex Iurii Radchenko 27 Ukraine Gay Alliance Ukraine Jana Jarinovska 29 Latvia Mozaika Jane Bonsaksen 19 Norway Skeiv Ungdom Julia Kata 30 Poland Trans-Fuzja Foundation Marcin Rodzinka 25 Poland Kampania Przeciw Homofobii Maria Panopoulou 21 Greece Colour Youth Esan Regmi 27 Nepal Blue Diamond Society Robyn Gardner 24 UK Equality Network Sophie Cairns 24 Ireland Irish Trans Student Alliance Lili Mamulashvili 23 Georgia n/a Daria Abrosimova 24 Russia ARSI Tony Glavin 21 Ireland Irish Trans Student Alliance Aleksandr Igotti 21 Estonia Estonian Medical Students Association
Prep Team
Euan Platt 35 Belgium IGLYO Daniela Prisacariu 25 Romania IGLYO Ugla Jonsdottir 25 Iceland IGLYO Kolbrun Anderson 32 Iceland OII Europe Greta Bilanzola 27 Italy Intersectioni Santiago Lima 24 Portugal API
39